As cheesy as it sounds, it’s so totally and completely true. I mean, A LOT happens in your twenties. Big things. Many people in their 30s say that’s the important decade, or people in their 40s believe that’s when true realization hits.

But… you have to get through your twenties to make it to those other “so totally cool” decades in life.

What could possibly happen after undergrad, you ask?

1. Friends will leave you [literally & figuratively]

The majority of your friends will move away and slowly (or drastically if you’re super unlucky) stop texting. Or your friends will be geographically nearby but will emotionally check out. Why? They find a significant other, they get married, they have kids, or they just drift out of the picture on their own.

What to do: Remember, you found those friends at some point, so you can find new ones – stop being lazy.

2. You will have a ton of internal conflicts

Some include but are not limited to: eating healthy and eating anything with cheese, bread or sugar; talk to this guy (or girl) who is no good for you or ignore them to prove a point; spend your money on self-pity gifts or save for future self-pity gifts; find whatever job you can to get money or search for your dream job; etc.

What to do: Accept that you won’t sleep for a few years.

3. You could potentially move back home

Yay, you’re officially a kid again, needing parental support. Hey, you can’t help it though! Society hasn’t really prepped you for the moments right after undergrad. Very few have their ducks in a row. Most twenty-somethings don’t even have all their ducks present, not to mention the weird grouping they’re in instead of a line. Sometimes you just have to go back to the drawing board – aka your childhood bedroom – and figure things out.

What to do: Remember how you sneaked out of your window when you were sixteen.

4. You could totally change career paths

Undergrad was so fun and you worked your butt off – maybe. But now you’re done with that and need to figure out what you can do with that super unique, narrow-fielded degree you chose. You definitely run into trouble when there are no jobs open in that field, which chances are there won’t be any jobs open.

What to do: Panic, and then realize you can go back to school or learn a new skill or apply and pray someone will take pity on your soul.

5. You will be single at some point

Not to be totally pessimistic, but there is a high probability that you won’t be in a relationship for your entire twenties. So, buckle up and get over it. Being single doesn’t isn’t bad, so don’t sulk over it. And just know that you aren’t completely alone – there are tons of singles out there mulling around like The Walking Dead extras.

What to do: Do what you want when you want; be selfish…and a little bitchy, too6. You will probably move a lot

First, you usually move away from college after graduation – there’s one. And sometimes you have to move back home. Then you move out closer to your job – that’s two. Some people even move in with their SOs – that’s three….and some break up and have to move out again – that’s four.

What to do: Save your boxes!

So, you see? It’s not all bad! I mean, it could be if you let it get you down, but just remember to turn that sarcasm dial up real high and smirk your way through your twenty-somethings.

Graduation comes and goes, everyone is happy, everything is confetti-filled and sparkly, hugs and gifts come pouring in from family, and loads of pictures are taken. Then, it’s on to the real rat race. We go into the job search pretty optimistically; I mean, we do have a bachelor’s degree that cost us thousands of dollars, right? So, it can’t be that hard. Every employer will want us, young, educated millennial beauts.

The Job Search

Reality: Zero jobs open, nothing requires the skills you possess, and no one wants you as an intern anymore

Job Descriptions

Expectation: All with a Bachelor’s degree in (your field of interest) welcome to apply!

Reality: Master’s degree plus 3 – 5 years of experience required for a janitor position

Jobs Open to Apply

Expectation: “Great hours, all holidays off, pay is competitive, your time is valuable”

Reality: Below entry level, pay is worse than at McDonalds, and your boss is younger than you, so you are wasetfully over-qualified

Interview

Expectation: Friendly employer, who casually converses with you, keeps you at ease the whole time, and asks if you meet specific qualifications

Reality: A couple of mid-level bosses with blank stares make a psychiatric evaluation of you: what are your weaknesses, where do you see yourself in 10 years, what could you bring to a team?

Work Environment

Expectations: Fun and casual fellow millennial coworkers, who are all dressed in the latest Banana Republic styles

Reality: Your coworkers are all super aged, and they just complain about their high-school aged kids and insurance

Week Nights

Expectations: Going out with your coworkers and trying out a different fun bar every Thursday

Reality: Drive home half asleep at 6:00pm and pop your dinner in the microwave

Weekends

Expectations: Plenty of time for fun and adventures now that you don’t have schoolwork piled up like in undergrad (everyone remembers those cram-filled Sunday afternoons that involved studying and writing papers simultaneously)

Reality: Sleep….because it’s free, and you can’t afford to go on any adventures

The Actual Work

Expectations: Fun, creative projects that will change the company and propel you upward to promotion after promotion

Everyone knows the postgrad life is not exactly what we imagined….or what we had mentally and emotionally prepared ourselves for; so, this segment of Expectation vs. Real Life will focus on the dating scene and what to actually expect. It is not at all like the Disney suggested. Although, those princesses were basically pre-teens, so I guess we should have already accepted that we missed our prince charming.

Friday Nights

Expected: Going out every week and flirting the night away with your large group of friends

Reality: Getting home from work and barely being able to make it to the couch to turn on Netflix

VS.

Dating Apps

Expectation: Mutually swiping right for a select few compatible mates

Reality: Aggressively swiping right for everyone because you are desperate and no one swipes back

VS.

Flirting

Expectation: Professional, confident, likable, and cute

Reality: Completely oblivious to everything because it’s been so long and you are totally behind the times

VS.

Compatibility

Expectation: Opposites attract, like-forces attract, you can make anything work

Reality: Anything and everything that is just a little bit different between you two is a GIANT pet-peeve

VS.

Meeting “The One”

Expectation: Some adorable, romantic, once-in-a-lifetime moment

Reality: Making a pact as children to be stuck marrying each other if you weren’t married by 30

VS.

First Dates

Expectation: Romantic, unique adventure that ends with staring up at the stars

Reality: Typical chain restaurant that ends with you two walking separately back to your car

VS.

Date Conversations

Expectation: Cute and sexy 20-questions

Reality: Complaining about loans, lack of money, a horrible job, and life as a twentysomething

VS.

Social Media

Expectation: Candid photos showing how in love you both are, whilst showing off how much fun you are having in life

Reality: Continuous and unappealing selfies that make you two look more like a mess than anything else

Unless you drive a substantial amount of time per day to work or class, you don’t understand true pain. So many feels occur during your drive. You live a lifetime during that trip. You laugh a little, you cry, you become hopeful, you get angry, you die a little, and a few other feels jump in there on you, too.

Now that you have graduated, starting a new job is a lot harder than you think. Some of us have to work jobs made for high schoolers, in fact some of your supervisors could be younger than you. Some of us have to work meaningless jobs at the lowest level possible. Some of us will get jobs that put us way in over our head. Others will have jobs that make us question our entire life so far. However, there are 7 thoughts that will go through your head when you start this new job after undergrad. Whatever the level of the work, intern or career, you will have these thoughts and probably some of these facial expressions, too.

First, it may not be the prettiest job in the world, but it will pay the bills…kind of.

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Second, you will forget what it is like to have major responsibilities

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Third, you will be so over the cliques already in place at your workplace.

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Fourth, you will realize you don’t care to make new friends.

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Fifth, you will realize no amount of money is enough for you at this point.

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Sixth, the drive to work will be really dreadful and no music can help.

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Seventh, you will be so jealous of the young, hopeful interns and realize how uncool you are now.

Before you worry about not finding “The One” or settling down or acting like a ‘real adult’, there are a few things you should really do for yourself.

Travel

Plan a trip or go spur of the moment! Visit a friend, take a friend, or make new friends on an adventure. Although this is a time in life that you may not have a lot of money, it is the best time to travel. No kids to drag along with you and no work schedule for you and your significant other to work around. Plus, that is what the Internet is for! So many blogs and travel sites have ideas for cheap ways to travel. You need to travel to appreciate things and culture, to appreciate what you have, and to live out your dreams.

Live on Your Own

Whether you have roommates or moved back home after undergrad, you need to leave all of that behind and live on your own for at least the length of one lease. Experience time on your own, so you can prove to yourself and others that you can survive on your own if needed. Teach yourself to not be afraid of the dark! Or just keep every single light on. That’s okay, too.

Find a Career Interest

This is the time of internships, volunteering, temporary jobs, and part-time work. It is time to test different career interests out. Internships are the best (paid ones are a gold mine) because you can test a career option out for a specific amount of time: if you hate it, the day it’s over just toss your ID badge to the wind and find another internship, but if you love it, grab those contacts and work on a way to a full-time position!

Be Happy In Your Own Skin

Be comfortable with who you are. Don’t worry about what you wear, what your make-up looks like, what brand your accessories are. It is not as much a fashion war out here like it was in high school or even undergrad. Don’t worry about judgments and just feel comfortable being 100% YOU. Go out and buy that superhero shirt you always wanted to rock, or that Minion tank that’s irresistible, or that crazy outfit you used to think would make you unpopular.

Maintain Solid Friendships

Up until now in your life, you probably have a few friendships that have outlasted any significant other you have dated. Don’t let those relationships dwindle because you’re too busy trying to “find a man” or a girl. Many people lose friends while they are trying to get the attention of a possible partner. Our twenties is the time to find people to laugh, cry, cheer, and explore with. These friendships keep us grounded throughout our lives, through thick and thin. It is important to have friends in life. Even when you eventually settle down, you will still need friends.

Be Grounded in Your Faith (whatever it may be)

It does not matter what you believe in (God, gods, Jesus, no Jesus, Mother Nature, Fate, etc.). As long as you have grounded morals and have something to keep you accountable to, you will be set in life. Give thanks, forgive, be patient, be optimistic, and help others. You need faith to keep you going in the hard times, so you need to start grounding yourself now before the real tough stuff comes.

Don’t just sit on the couch for three months. Set some goals. Have some laughs. Don’t end up like most of the people in these GIFs.

Learn new water tricks to show off at the beach or pool

Everyone just goes to the pool or beach and lays on a towel. I mean, how impressive can that be? Don’t just be a beach bum and lie there slowing burning and thus, dying. Take this guy for example, he is trying really hard to impress someone. Challenge here: Impress someone with something new you’ve learned

Get a part-time or flexible side job

Look into babysitting or being a nanny. You literally get paid to play with toys, and then sit in a home watching TV. Sure you need to be fully prepared for anything that could happen, but it is also a really fun job. I mean look at this woman, she obviously knows how to babysitting correctly. Knock the kid out early on, and you’re golden. Challenge here: Twerk so hard it sends someone to the ground.

Go to the gym a couple of times to get yourself into a routine for the fall

Don’t worry about those people doing hardcore workouts and posting about it every day. Do it your way, on your time, and at your pace. But just do it. Look into different types of classes or workouts, experiment. Kickboxing, yoga, volleyball, Frisbee, swimming, whatever! There are plenty of options to get fit and many places to go to get your workout on…like a bathroom apparently. Challenge here: Don’t deface property.

Try new foods

Venturing outside your comfort-zone-palette can be good for you. Try a new ethnic food or go out to a new (but cheap, of course) drive-thru, oh I mean restaurant. Try actually cooking food that does not require a microwave, or expand your food horizon to foods that do not need hot water added to it. Challenge here: Eat a new food and wear it somehow.

Don’t spend your precious summer time worrying about your future/life

Summer is time for great adventures, relaxing, stress-free planning, and sleeping. It is our only time to really detoxify our minds. If you must plan something about your future, do it slowly and peacefully. There are no time constraints during June-August! Challenge here: Don’t go full-Schmidt and panic.

Don’t date for the sake of a summer-fling

That only happens in movies, or when people forget they live in the real world. Be single and happy about it during the summer. It is three months of just focusing on YOU. Plus, let’s face it, how do people actually meet anyone in the summer anyway? On the plane for an hour? Walking down the same streets you walk down every day out of the year? I do not know where people find summer-flings that they cannot find during the year. What could you possibly be doing that is so much different than the other months of your life? Challenge here: Practice your sassy comebacks.

Cross something off of your bucket list

First, make a bucket list because it is cool and helps you realize how little you have actually done in your life so far. Then mark something off, so you can feel better about yourself! Even if it seems impossible, write it down because when you accomplish it, you feel invincible. Kind of like Batman. Except when Bane threw him in the sewer that one time. Don’t be that version of Batman. Challenge here: Don’t be lame.

Go somewhere new, whether it is in the same state that you live in or a new state or new country

Traveling really changes a person. Seeing how other people live and how different the world looks in other locations can make you a smarter person. Staying in the same place your whole life makes you lose appreciation for places and people. Travel, explore, and get out! Challenge here: Get as wanderlust as possible, and then beg people for money so you can travel even more.